Luna reveals controversy behind the scenes of Eurovision 2024

In the final of Eurovision 2024, held in Malmö, viewers from all over Europe watched the artistic struggle, which ended with the victory of the Swiss representative, Nemo. However, Luna, a Polish singer who also participated in the contest, reveals that the atmosphere backstage was far from friendly. The Israeli delegation was accused of taunts and provocations towards other participants.

I do not know exactly what happened between Joost and the Israeli delegation or the media. But I can only say that the media and the Israeli delegation were very aggressive and provocative towards us, all the artists. I was perhaps a bit lucky that I did not take part in the semi-finals in which Israel took part. It did not affect me directly, but it did affect artists close to me. I can’t speak on behalf of someone else, simply put, but these were unpleasant situations that were uncultured and inappropriate,” Luna confessed in an interview with the Pomponik website.

Controversy over Israel’s performance

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has confirmed receiving complaints from the Irish national team, relating to the actions of the Israeli team. In particular, Eden Golan stylist Itay Bezaleli was alleged to have behaved indecently, recording other participants without permission – an activity illegal in Sweden. In addition, artists from Ireland, Greece and Switzerland were recorded and photographed without their consent, which resulted in these artists not appearing at the opening ceremony before the general rehearsal of the show. The reaction was immediate, but seems insufficient – the only action by the EBU was to move Eden Golan’s dressing room. The situation quickly escalated when the Israeli delegation’s stylist on Instagram called Ireland’s representative, Bambie Thug, a “monster” and later referred to Irish artists as “satanic and a blemish on the world”. Bambie Thug has repeatedly publicly criticised Israel’s military action against the Palestinians, which has only exacerbated tensions. The scandal at Eurovision 2024 is indicative of the growing political and social tensions that are reflected even in an event such as an international song contest. What further steps the European Broadcasting Union will take against the violations remains an open question.

Luna’s performance interrupted

In addition to this, Luna touched on an unpleasant situation that took place during the broadcast of the Serbian channel RTS. We wrote more about it a few days ago: Eurovision scandal! Luna’s performance interrupted by the Serbian broadcaster The broadcaster interrupted the Eurovision broadcast during the performance to cover the visit of Xi Jinping, the President of the People’s Republic of China.

Ultimately, Luna stressed that, despite the difficulties she faced at this year’s Eurovision, she felt an atmosphere of unity between the artists.

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The situation at Eurovision 2024, the surprising behaviour of the Israeli delegation and the reactions of Luna and other artists show the complexity of emotions and tensions that accompany this international competition.